Hydraulic separator for treating mixed minerals



No. 607,755. Paten ted July l9, I898.

w. s. LOCKHART.

HYDRAULIC SEPARATOR FOR TREATING MIXED MINERALS,

(Application fi1e d July 7, 1897.)

(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet I.

m2 Nomus PETERS no, PNDTOUTHOH w/xsums'ruN, u. c.

No. 607,755. Patented July I9, I898. W. S. LOCKHART.

HYDRAULIC SEPARATDR FOR TREATING MIXED MINERALS.

iApplication filed July 7, 18974) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2,

(N0 Mudel.)

INYENTOR fla KM M vA/Amwi \Nnmasses H ATTYS.

Elnrrnn Sra'rns Farnwr tries.

WILLIAM STRONAOH LOOKHART, OF LONDON, ENGLAND, ASSIGNOR TO THE AUTOMATICGEM AND GOLD SEPARATOR SYNDICATE, LIMITED, OF

. SAME PLACE.

HYDRAULIC SEPARATOR FOR TREATING MIXED MINERALS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 607,755, dated July 19,1898.

7 Application filed July '7, 1897. Serial No. 643,747. (No model.)

To all whom, it may concern.-

Be it known that I, WILLIAM STRONACH LOOKHART, residing at London,England, have invented an Improvement in Hydraulic Separators forTreating Mixed Minerals, of

which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to hydraulic upwardcurrent separators for eiiectingthe separation of metals, gems, or other minerals from their 10 gangue,slimes, sand, or materials with which they are mixed; and it consists ofconstructional improvement in such a device whereby the passagecontaining the separatingstream-of water is constituted thelast-confined issuing-exit of such stream and where by the velocity ofsuch stream is better controlled by a finely-adjustable adjacent head orweir adapted so as to be absolutely constant when set in any specificposition.

In order that my invention may be the better understood, I now proceedto describe the same in relation to the drawings annexed hereto and tothe letters marked thereon.

Figure 1 represents an outside View of my upward-current separator andmode of supplying it with the minerals and water. Fig. 2 is a verticalsection through the said separator.

The slime, gravel, ore, or gangue of a uniform fineness, containing thegold, metal, gems, or other mineral that it is desired to separatetherefrom, is fed, preferably by mechanical means, into the hopper, andthence falls by the nozzle a onto the cone-piece F.

5 The supply of water to the separator is provided from a supply-tank orstand-pipe B, maintained at a constant level by a ball-tap or aconstantly-running overflow. This first constant supply-head of waterfrom the tank or stand-pipe B may be made available for severalseparators, the supply to each separator being controlled by anintermediate finely-adjustable valve 0, which regulates the flow intoeach separator, so as to maintain a definite and uniform head of waterat D in the separator conveniently adjoining the annular issue-nozzle ofthe separator E, in which the actual separation of the gold, metals,gems, or other desired minerals from the slime, gangue, or substanceswith which they are mixed takes place.

The gold, gems, metals, or minerals, with their associated gangue,gravel, or slime, after passing down the outside of the cone F, enterthe separation-annulus E by the exteu nal channel d, where is maintaineda constant head of water from the supply-pipes b b, the inlet 0, andannular and serpentine passages e 6. These passages are made of largerarea thanthe annulus E and of ser- 6o pentine form to insure waterWithout eddies, and the highest parts of such serpentine channels areventilated by the pipes 6 into the interior chamber of the separator,which is maintained in constant communication with the atmosphere byventilation-tubes f, passing through the cone-piece F.

According to the flow of water permitted from the main head in tank orstand-pipe B through the valve O the specific height or head of water Din the annulus dis determined to maintain a required fiow through theseparation-annulus E.

Where little water. enters with the mineral to be treated from thehopper A and where a very small fluctuation of the head of Water D isnot of consequence, the outer lip of the annulus d maybe continuedupward,as shown in dotted lines (1, up to the hopper-nozzle a; but wherethere is much water entering with the slime or gangue and where it isnecessary to maintain the head of water D very exact the outer lip ofthe annular weir d or part of it is made adjustable by an outer screwedring G, provided with handles g g, by which the outer lip may beaccurately adjusted at will, or by one or more weights or notchestherein similarly adjustable as to height to determine an overflow atany desired point should the head D tend to rise by access of 0 waterthrough any means. The overflow from the outer weir is collected in anyconvenient manner, such as by the annular trough g or by one or moreissue-pipes to Waste 9.

The heavier gold, gems, or minerals when 5 they have entered theseparation-annulus E are not supported by the upward-flowing stream ofWater, but fall through such stream 2 i coarse into the outer part'l-Iof the 'lowercasing andi thence through the collecting-nozzle 72 and thevalve-chamber K to the locked receptacle :L,

which may be of glass or providedwith sightholes to show theaccumulation of the gold,

gems, or minerals.

5 and screwmlown valve is, is furnished so that I to *enterstheseparator and'that'such separation-annulus shall be the: last exit of:thewa 1 ter from such system of confiningchannels I i and that the headof water determining the r Y velocityof the water in such separation-amV 1 r 7 "per for mixed wet material; to be separated 7 r ment astoheight and shall lie-adapted to be 2 maintainedabsolutelyconstantinlevelwhenr1 the valve 176 may be closed when desired and a thelocked receptacle 'L' removed for 'colle'c- V tion of the gems, gold, orminerals." Ontheother hand, the lighter slime, gangue,'orma i terialsmixed with the gold, gems, or minerals I are carried up by the force of;the current of 1 water'in the separation-annulusE andflow, 1 with thewater, over the lip of the inner an'' nular weir into the internalwastercollecting V waste by 1 a and distributing the material tobeseparated,

'theann'ular: chamber beneath having a narrow exit chan-nel between itsinner wall and t the edge oflsaidrconc and forming a'dearh 7 water spacebetween the cone. and its outer :wall, a: vertically-adjustable sleeveforming an adjustable edge for said outer wall, a 1 lower chamberhavingan arrow channel comchamber M and are carried away to theexit-nozzle and'pipeN N; a r V V V In order toobtain perfect andaccuratesep aration of gold, gems, or other minerals froin theirslim' e,gangue, or othersubstances with V which they are'mixed, I find itimportai'lt that the separation-annulus E shallhe the most constrictedpart of the system of various pipes,

valves,- or channels through which the: water 'nulus shall be capable ofvery fine adjustdetermined for the treatment of substances such'asslimes and float-gold. 7 These essena tial points for successfuloperation are embraced in the apparatus I have just described. Havingnow described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure byLetters Patent, is

1. In combination in a hydraulic gravityseparator, an annular chamber,receiving the material to be separated, and in communication with thewater-supply of separation; a vertically-adjustable ring connected tothe outer edge of said annular chamber adapted to adjust height of localhead of still water in said annular chamber to control speed of adjacentseparation current, an annular chamber beneath the upperreceiving-chamber admitting gravity separated particles through acontracted annular neck, a contracted annular overflow-orifice. forminga vertical extension of said contracted neck, and an annular circuitouswater-supply passtantially as described,

'2. In combination,the cone for receiving at itspointand spreading by:its: coned sure 'face the material to be separated; the 211111- :larreceiving-chamber at thebase of the cone,

adapted to discharge outwardly any excess betweentheconc and inner wallof upper sage-leading to the saidzlower chamber, sub- V V r 7 of waterwith material, having, a lateral com- 'municatiou: with a narrowadjacent annular and vertical water-exit passage. between its inner walland the edge of the said cone, a; chamber tozrecjeivethe separatedmaterialbe- 'neath' the: said contracted annular passage supply passageto said lower chamber, substantially asdescribed, a I

'3; Incombinaticn, thezcone for receiving miuni'cating wit-lithe upperchamber, and a 5 ci'rc uitouswaterrsu ppl y leading to said lowerchamber, substantially as described.

4. V A self-containedhydraulic gravity-step V V V arator consisting of,in combination, a hop- 7 with central discharge, a cone-spreader withapex upward supporting said hopper orskelebase ofcone adapted todischarge outwardly V free from apparatus excess water with matc-' rial,to receive and maintain a constant head of water from other constantsupply to interior of apparatus and to transmit into an adjacent upwardcurrent annulus the particles to be separated, a downward means of exitto locked receptacles from base of upward current of heavygravity-separated particles, and a free unrestricted exit inwardlytoward center of apparatus of the light waste particles and separatingcurrent of water, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in thepresence of two subscribing witnesses.

WILLIAM STRONACII LOCKIIAR'I;

ICC

